In the final years of the Qing Dynasty, Yang Zhaoyuan of Leshan Mountain followed his master Shi Zhipu to Songshan Shaolin Temple in Henan Province to study martial arts. Yang mastered the Shaolin method and returned to Leshan to teach Arhat Fist in the Neijiang district. An Arhat, or luohan in Chinese, is an enlightened being of Buddhist mythology often imbued with magical powers.

Grandmaster Gao Chunhe was born in 1912 in Neijiang in Sichuan Province, China. He studied martial arts from childhood and rose to become one of China’s greatest masters.

The Legendary Grandmasters of China series showcases many of the leading elder grandmasters of China. The footage was collected from 1983 to 1986 during China’s National Martial Arts Survey. When the department in charge of this survey was shut down by the government, much of the data was lost. Fortunately, some footage was recovered and has been re-mastered to include new lesson material. Each form demonstrated by the Grandmasters is broken down for instructional purposes by leading contemporary practitioners of these styles. TC Media is proud to present these historic videos in order to preserve the legacy of these extraordinary Grandmasters.